Saint Ivo Of Kermartin – 19 May – Saint Of The Day
Saint Ivo of Kremartin. A French priest and an advocate. Patron saint of lawyers, abandoned children and Brittany.
Ivo of Kremartin (1253–1303) was born into a wealthy family in Kremartin, north-west France. At the age of 14 he started studying civil law at the University of Paris, and after that – canon law, the law of the Catholic Church.
Later, working as a judge, he protected orphans and widows, defended the poor rendering fair and impartial verdicts. He also studied Scripture, joined the Third Order of St Francis and in 1284 Ivo was ordained to the priesthood. Due to his charity he gained the title of advocate and patron of the poor.
Ivo of Kremartin died of natural causes.
Iconography – Saint Ivo of Kremartin is often depicted with a purse in his right hand (for the money he gave to the poor during his life) and a rolled paper in the other hand (for his charge as a judge). Also, he can be depicted standing between a rich man and a poor man.
